Overtopping erosion is one of the main factors responsible for the destruction of earthen structures due to floods. Considering the shortage of existing studies and the need for further research to properly understand the processes leading to breaching failure, this study investigates the effect of compaction level (dry density) on the overtopping erosion response of model compacted silty sand dams using a laboratory flume apparatus. From side-view video recordings of the homogeneous earthen dam cross-section, digital image-processing techniques are employed to track and forensically analyse and interpret the initiation and progression of the erosion edge. The results indicate that the overall pattern of initiation and development of overtopping erosion depends on the compaction level, with greater compactive effort (higher shear strength of soil) reducing its progression speed, thereby increasing the time period for the erosion edge to reach the dam's upstream crest (t_B) and breaching failure. Artificial neural network and response surface methodology (RSM) approaches are investigated for estimating the experimental t_B values, with the RSM-derived third-order polynomial found to produce good predictions for the three compaction levels investigated. Finally, recommendations are given for further research, including employing the experimental set-up presented for investigating other types of dam failure.

中文翻译：

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用数字图像处理方法分析模型土坝的过顶侵蚀

过度侵蚀是造成洪水破坏土结构的主要因素之一。考虑到现有研究的不足以及需要进行进一步研究以正确理解导致破坏破坏的过程，本研究使用实验室水槽设备研究了压实水平（干密度）对模型压实粉质砂坝的顶层侵蚀响应的影响。 。从均质土坝横截面的侧视图视频记录中，采用数字图像处理技术来跟踪和取证分析和解释侵蚀边缘的发生和发展。结果表明，覆盖侵蚀的发生和发展的总体模式取决于压实程度，t _B）和破坏失败。研究了人工神经网络和响应面方法（RSM）方法以估计实验的t _B值，发现RSM衍生的三阶多项式可为所研究的三个压实水平提供良好的预测。最后，提出了进一步研究的建议，包括采用提出的用于调查其他类型大坝破坏的实验装置。